Everest Avalanche: Sherpas Demand Rs 1 Mn for Victims

“We are also asking the government to set up a Mountaineering Relief Fund by allocating 30 per cent of the royalty received from the climbers,” he said.

The Sherpas demanded that statues of all the deceased climbers should be installed in Kathmandu for their recognition.

“We will launch an agitation, if these demands are not met,” the Sherpas said.

Meanwhile, six dead bodies were brought to Shahid Park in Kathmandu today for a funeral procession where Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Development Prakash Man Singh and other senior government officials paid homage to the Sherpas by garlanding their dead bodies.

If the Sherpa guides go on strike it could seriously disrupt the rest of the climbing season, a mountaineering official said.

There were about 400 foreign climbers representing 39 expedition teams on the mountain and equal number of Sherpa guides along with a number of support staff such as porters, cooks and cleaners are at the base camp.

Nine Sherpas were rescued alive after the avalanche swept away about 25 climbers and mountain guides on Friday.

The rescue team abandoned their search today due to heavy snowfall.